This great encyclopedia, the first to include science, technology, and commerce among its subjects, had to be published secretly since it questioned many of the religious, political, and social tenants of the 18th century and antagonized the government and church hierarchy. Voltaire, Montesquieu, Rosseau, and other Enlightenment philosophers contributed articles, and seven volumes of superb copperplate engravings show the various artistic and industrial processes in remarkably beautiful images that stand on their own as works of art.